The present invention relates to a device for receiving and forwarding electronic messages which each comprise at least a section containing coded control information and other information, which control information comprises at least one group of destination address information and which device is provided with;
a memory; PA1 decoding means connected to the memory for receiving the electronic messages and for decoding the coded control information and for storing, for each electronic message, the decoded control information together with the other information in the memory; PA1 forwarding means connected to the memory for reading, for each electronic message, the decoded control information together with the other information out of the memory and for forwarding at least the said other information of the electronic message via a communication link selected on the basis of at least the one group of destination address information, after a time interval to be controlled automatically by the forwarding means. PA1 a "central way-of-delivery code" which controls the forwarding means so as to forward at least the other information to a central distributing device for distributing electronic messages to receiving machines disposed in its vicinity, which central distributing device is selected by the forwarding means on the basis of the distance from the address associated with the destination address information; PA1 a "postal way-of-delivery code" which controls the forwarding means so as to forward at least the other information, optionally via a central distributing device, to a receiving machine of a post office which is selected by the forwarding means on the basis of the distance from the address associated with the destination address information.
Such a device is disclosed in European Patent Application EP-A-0,360,732. In the European patent application, such a device is referred to as a "store and forward facility" (SAFF). Such devices are disposed between a transmitting fax machine and a receiving fax machine. Transmitting fax machines transmit their fax messages to such a device, after which the device stores the fax messages received in a memory. The device then determines the various communication links via which the various fax messages must be sent to receiving fax machines. The receivers of the transmitted fax messages can also themselves be in turn similar devices which are disposed centrally and are coupled to various fax machines and are equipped to distribute the received fax messages to the various receiving fax machines. The advantage of such devices between transmitting machines and receiving fax machines is primarily that the transmitting fax machines no longer often occupy in vain, for example, long-distance links at instants when the receiving fax machine is not capable of receiving a fax message, for example because it is already receiving another fax message from another transmitting fax machine at that instant. Because the devices between the transmitting and receiving fax machines are provided with memories for storing various fax messages, international communication links, in particular, only have to be occupied once for transmitting international fax messages. The risk that a receiving fax-machine is not capable of receiving a fax message is then manifested only by means of the various number of times an attempt is made to make contact via a local communication link, which is cheaper than an international communication link. In this way, more efficient use is made of telecommunication links.
Of the known device for receiving and forwarding fax messages, it is reported that it is capable of waiting until a suitable communication link is available before the fax message is forwarded.
Of the known device, it is furthermore reported that it is possible for a user to make contact with it via a telephone line in order to give a priority to a particular fax message. The transmitting device for forwarding the respective fax message will then assign a priority level to the respective fax message and communicate this to the receiving device in order to forward fax messages to the other end of the chosen communication link. The consequence of this is that the receiving device for forwarding fax messages will give the respective fax message a higher priority than the messages already waiting for a particular destination address. The communication of such a priority of a fax message neither has consequences for the choice of the type of communication link (which can be differentiated, for example, as regards cost and quality) between the two devices for forwarding fax messages, nor for the time interval in which fax messages are forwarded from the one device to the other.